KATHMANDU: The Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) is set to provide refinancing facilities to hydropower projects that are facing trouble due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The central bank has made relief arrangement focusing on the hydropower projects in trouble by amending the ‘Nepal Rastra Bank Refinancing Work Procedure, 2021’.
As per NRB, facilities would be provided to the projects identified by the report of the committee formed to commission a study on the problems of pandemic-hit private sector-led hydropower projects.
The refinancing facilities would be provided to the small hydropower projects below the capacity of 10 MW for a year in maximum. The central bank has provided refinancing up to Rs 1.5 million each to small and cottage industries and special and general refinancing up to Rs 50 million.
Power procedures had been seeking refinancing facility from the central bank since long citing that construction of a large number of hydropower projects have been severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
Amending the refinancing procedure, the central bank has also compelled banks and financial institutions to ensure that refinancing facility is provided to customers of all seven provinces.
Meanwhile, the central bank has also categorized loans that cannot be counted under the refinancing facility.
Overdraft loans, real estate loans, car loans, household goods loans, margin loans, gold and silver loans, social loans and loans taken in personal name or for personal consumption, not for any enterprise but for personal purposes, among other type of loans are not eligible under the refinancing facility, as per NRB.
Similarly, subsidized loans including interest subsidized concessional loans, loans to industries and businesses with a return on equity of 20 percent or more in the last fiscal year are not eligible for refinancing facility.